Monday, November 19, 2012

Cisco Buys Meraki For $1.2 Billion (CSCO)

Cisco Buys Meraki For $1.2 Billion (CSCO):
cisco ceo john chambers
Nov. 19 (Bloomberg) -- Cisco Inc. agreed to pay $1.2 billion for closely held Meraki Inc., adding technology that helps businesses manage Wi-Fi networks remotely and expanding its lineup of products for mid-sized customers.
Cisco, the world’s largest maker of computer-networking equipment, is using a combination of cash and retention-based incentives to pay for the acquisition, the San Jose, California- based company said yesterday in a statement.
Chief Executive Officer John Chambers is seeking to capitalize on the boom in demand for smartphones and tablets in the workplace by snapping up a company that helps businesses manage security and wireless access points via the Internet. The deal is aimed at broadening his customer base as Cisco cuts costs, shuts underperforming divisions and trims prices to fend off rivals such as Hewlett-Packard Co. and Juniper Networks Inc.
“The valuation reflects that Wi-Fi, as a market, has very compelling growth prospects ahead,” said Erik Suppiger, an analyst at JMP Securities LLC in San Francisco who rates Cisco market perform.
Cisco rose less than 1 percent to $17.99 on Nov. 16, and its shares are little changed this year.
San Francisco-based Meraki expects about $100 million in bookings this year and its employee base ballooned to 330 from 120 this year, Meraki Chief Executive Officer Sanjit Biswas wrote in a letter to employees discussing the deal.

Cisco’s Approach


Cisco approached Meraki with the offer several weeks ago with the pitch of extending the company’s reach with worldwide distribution through Cisco’s sales apparatus. Cisco was attracted by Meraki’s technology and financials, Biswas wrote.
The company has offices in New York, London and Mexico and was formed in 2006 by doctoral candidates from Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Its backers include Google Inc. and venture capital firm Sequoia Capital. Cisco expects the deal to close in the second quarter of next year.
Cisco, which had planned to announce the acquisition later today, inadvertently posted a blog about it yesterday, according to Karen Tillman, a spokeswoman for the company.
The deal comes as the computer-networking industry is undergoing a shift toward software that eliminates the need for some expensive types of equipment and gives administrators more remote control over their networks. Established rivals and startups have been putting pressure on Cisco’s profit margins, forcing the company to undergo a restructuring.
Chambers has cut 7,800 jobs over the past year and a half, closed businesses such as the Flip video-camera unit and eliminated bureaucratic bottlenecks in a bid to speed decision- making and focus Cisco’s resources on the company’s key networking businesses.

(Cisco will host a conference call to discuss the transaction today at 9 a.m. New York time. To listen, go to LIVEor call (866) 432-9903, using pass code 209 867 958.)


--With assistance from Zachary R. Mider in New York. Editors: Tom Giles, Theo Mullen

To contact the reporter on this story: Jordan Robertson in San Francisco at jrobertson40@bloomberg.net

To contact the editor responsible for this story: Tom Giles at tgiles5@bloomberg.net


Please follow SAI on Twitter and Facebook.
Join the conversation about this story »




DIGITAL JUICE

No comments:

Post a Comment

Thank's!